Wednesday, June 27, 2007

Why I love hockey

Hockey and I have a strange relationship. I was absolutely mad for it growing up--starting even before grade school--and I continued to follow my beloved Flyers after I moved out of Philly for graduate school and then down to DC. It was tough to do, though, as articles and news stories weren't all that common in the local and even national media (barring the internet, which became my lifeline). Hockey certainly doesn't receive the sort of media attention of other major sports... nor does it really deserve it anymore, except as a case study of how to run a major league sport into the ground sideways and on fire. Long story there, but suffice it to say that, between my being out of the loop and the league's slow implosion, hockey and I thus began to drift apart.

And it's no surprise. The NHL was crashing and burning with poor television contracts and equally crappy print media coverage (just try being an NHL fan in Washington--it ain't pretty), until the bottom fell out with the lockout of 2004-2005. Even before the lockout, I knew things were spiraling downward when I chose to sit through the remaining innings of a Phillies game in May rather than walk back with my mother to watch the Flyers on tv in a playoff game that afternoon. Hockey and I had reached the nadir of our relationship that day. Some day I'll sit you down around the fire and tell you the tale of the Evil Gary Bettman Monster and His Wanton Destruction of the Sport I Love. But that's for another time.

This is a way too long introduction to the following link, a link that illustrates beautifully what it is about hockey that has me coming back, hat in hand, hoping it'll forgive me as I'm slowing starting to forgive it. It's not just the beauty and intensity of the sport that so attracts me; it's also the unintentional comedy. I could try to articulate what it is, but I don't need to, because Bill Simmons from ESPN has done so for us. I know this link is of no interest to anyone reading this but HB, but that's cool. Enjoy, HB!

Wednesday, June 13, 2007

Je suis retournee!

Hey, peeps. I'm back from France (and Spain). While a couple of you have asked for the full dish on my trip abroad, there's really not much to say, oddly enough. That's because it wasn't like one of those "and on Monday we saw the Pope, on Tuesday we toured the Hermitage, and on Wednesday we hiked Kilimanjaro" sort of trips. It was my cousin's wedding, and she, her partner, and the wedding guests pretty much took over the village of La Caunette (pop. 250-300) to celebrate. And let me tell you, the happy couple really knows how to throw a party. I can't tell you the last time I just felt so... relaxed. No email, no phone ringing off the hook, no "PSK, do you mind if I drop in unexpectedly while you're eating lunch to ask you for help with this massive project that's due in ten minutes?" that I often get at work. So, yes, I owe those two big-time. It was, in short, absolutely lovely in every way. Consider, for instance, a typical day: (1) wake up to a view of a vine- and wildflower-covered hill; (2) have a kick-ass breakfast of fresh bread, Nutella, jam, cheese, and tea; (3) head to the main hall to either help with the wedding or attend a wedding festivity; (4) gorge oneself on wine and cheese; (5) go on a stroll; (6) stop at the cafe for more wine and/or beer; (7) take a nap; (8) attend another wedding-related event, featuring music, dancing, and still more wine; (9) meet for dinner to gorge on wine, cheese, and dessert; (10) continue to hang out with awesome people and drink wine until bedtime. You just can't beat that.

Spain sure couldn't. Don't get me wrong, Girona was fine, but you've seen one medieval town, you've seen them all. (I'm glad that only about two people read this, because I have no doubt I've offended buckets of medieval scholars, but there you go.) That, and I suffered a migraine for a good 24 hours there, which was just about half my time in the town, anyway. So I spent way more time staring at cartoons dubbed into Catalan than I'd have hoped, but at least I think I got a semi-decent taste for the city (at least the old city) for the day that I could.

Should you have any interest in (annoyingly overexposed) photos, you can find them here:

http://picasaweb.google.com/myfirstname.mylastname. Substitute accordingly.